The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced an enforcement memorandum for a short-term increase in inspections directed at hospitals and nursing care facilities that treat COVID-19 patients.

According to OSHA, the goal of the inspections is to ensure continued mitigation of COVID-19 and future variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and protect the health and safety of health care workers at heightened risk for contracting the virus. OSHA intends to expand its presence in targeted, high-hazard health care facilities during a three-month period from March 9, 2022 to June 9, 2022. 

“We are using available tools while we finalize a healthcare standard,” said Doug Parker, assistant secretary of labor for OSHA. “We want to be ahead of any future events in healthcare.”